Peace Corps Ghana FAQ

From GhanaWiki

[edit] Before You Go

[edit] What should I pack?

[edit] Luggage

Luggage isn't particularly important. Once I reached my site and got unpacked, my luggage went into my closet and stayed there until I left. On the other hand, luggage can get moldy in storage, and airport handlers can be rough with it, so you probably shouldn't skimp on luggage, either. "Soft" luggage, such as a large backpack, might be a good idea.

Also, bringing along a good medium-sized rucksack is recommended. Something big enough for weekend trips, but no bigger.

Army duffle bags are good. Nothing can rip them and the loops at the top come together so that one full sized padlock can lock the whole thing.

Remember that any checked luggage is subject to search, and therefore any locks are at risk of being cut by security personnel if they need to examine your luggage when you're not around. It is therefore recommended to use only TSA-approved locks on your checked luggage. These locks are available in both key and combination types and allow TSA personnel to open them without cutting.

[edit] Clothes

Try to bring as few clothes as possible. Slacks and button-down shirts or dresses can be tailor-made for you once you reach Ghana. The cloth in Ghana is lighter and more comfortable in tropical weather than most American clothing.

The Peace Corps packing list will tell you to bring 100% cotton items. However, some volunteers disagree, saying that cotton blends are better (cotton/lycra or cotton/spandex, for example--but not cotton/polyester, which doesn't breathe well). Remember that there are no washing machines, and you will be doing your laundry by hand. Cotton blends hold their shape better, and are easier to keep clean. Some people say pure cotton is cooler, but it is just always hot in Ghana, no matter what you wear! 100% cotton or linen does dry faster and it does breathe more, so you avoid heat rashes. Bring a mix.

Keep in mind that jeans tend to be hot to wear, are harder to hand wash and wring out (no spin cycle!), and take longer to dry than lighter weight fabrics.

The sun is brutal, and sunscreen gets sweated off real quick, so some kind of hat with a brim can save your skin, as well as keep the sun out of your eyes. Sunglasses are hot to wear and slide down sweaty noses. Glasses with a wrap-around earpiece are helpful for keeping them in place when sweating. After three years in the tropical sun, one volunteer's mother made her go get a facial to soften the leathery skin she had acquired in Ghana! Shoulders also get burned easily, so having some kind of short sleeve is safer than wearing tank tops, even though they're a little hotter to wear. Light, non-stretchy cotton is much cooler than t-shirts, partly because it doesn't cling to your skin.

Although Peace Corps Ghana will tell you that shorts are completely unacceptable to wear (except for sports), bring at least one pair for lounging around the house, any football games you might end up playing in, etc. They are worth it!

[edit] Socks

Depending on what your job will be, socks may be very useful. If you're working outdoors in a rural setting, such as forestry, socks and boots are quite important. Walking around a tree nursery in sandals or flip flops is not recommended—too many snakes and uneven ground. Plus, the grass can be itchy.

Even if your job doesn't require walking around in the bush, you will probably want to bring plenty of socks. Teachers, for example, are expected to wear dress shoes and dress socks.

Socks with a good amount of spandex hold their shape better than pure cotton ones.

On the other hand, some volunteers find socks too hot and wear sandals constantly and think it was ultimately a waste of packing space. Chacosare a great investment for any PCV and are available at a discounted rate (50% off) for PCVs.

You can buy socks fairly cheaply in Ghana but they are typically low quality.

[edit] Underwear

One volunteer highly recommends Jockey cotton. She says they never wore out during her three years of service. (Quite surprising; hand washing can be rough on clothes!)

Cotton is good because of the heat. Cotton again helps prevent heat rash or "jock itch" and fungus(yeast) from growing. This is especially important for females. Also remember that your underwear will be on a cloths line or in a bathroom drying.

Quality underwear can be hard to find in Ghana. Consider bringing enough to last throughout your stay. Bring lots--it gets grungy after hand washing.

Bringing some that are a size smaller than you normally wear can be useful, since you won't have a dryer to shrink them back to size after washing. They tend to get a little stretched out. You'll likely lose some weight there anyway.

[edit] Toiletries

Be prepared to use what's there. Although you can get a lot of Western brands in Accra, they are expensive.

Men, for example, can purchase a bar of local Ghanaian soap, lather it up, and use the suds for shaving. It's not necessary to buy or bring true shaving cream.

Bring shampoo and anything personal like face wash if you have problematic or sensitive skin. The medical office in Accra can supply you with anti-acne soap and gels if you break out unexpectedly from the heat, sweat, dirt, or stress. Although feminine hygiene pads are readily available, tampons are not. Consider bringing a lot of them, having them shipped, or investing in something like The Keeper

[edit] Food

Besides the normal packing, bring some treats for yourself. Food choices are surprisingly limited here. "Surprisingly" because most areas of the country have three growing seasons, but the vegetables are pretty limited to tomatoes, cabbage, onion, garden eggs, maize, and okra. There are lots of fresh fruits, however.

Treats don't last very long, however, and take up a lot of room in your pack. Another idea is to bring powdered seasoning and sauce mixes such as those from Lawry's. With those little packets, you can whip up some pasta and rice dishes that taste like home. And they're so small that taking a bunch of them to Ghana is no big deal. You can also buy extra and have friends or family send them to you after you've settled in at your site.

[edit] Kitchenware

Tupperware and Ziploc bags are very useful. Don't go overboard, though: Consider shipping yourself a box of kitchen supplies to minimize how much you have to carry. "Tupperware" is easily bought in any larger market. Plastic containers are readily available.

The Peace Corps Ghana Welcome Book suggests bringing a frying pan, but don't pack one unless you like to cook. You don't have to cook for yourself here if you don't want to and frying pans are big and heavy!

If you like to cook and plan to cook for yourself a few sharp knives and a good non-stick frying pan are essential. You can get pots and pans here but they are of very inferior quality and expensive. Add a few favorite spices and sauce mixes too.

[edit] Electronics

[edit] Electricity

Make sure anything electronic that you bring can operate on 220 volts of current (or on batteries). Note that batteries in Ghana are either very expensive or don't last very long, so if you're planning to bring battery-operated electronics, consider bringing rechargeable batteries and charger with you, as well. Again, remember that the charger must be compatible with 220 V.

Don't worry about plug adapters; you can easily purchase the right ones cheaply almost anywhere in Ghana. The British Type 3 plug is by far the most common, but you will also find the Europlug.

For more details, see Electricity.

[edit] Cameras

Digital cameras are fine, especially if you also bring a laptop for storing pictures. (Remember to make backups in case of theft or hard drive failure! If you don't have a laptop, you can usually find a fellow volunteer who has one and can backup your pictures to a CD-RIM for you. You can also do this at the sub-offices in Tamale and Kumasi and at the main office in Accra.)

However, printing digital camera photos is a bit of a challenge. Some photo shops in Accra can print from digital, but the quality is not high.

[edit] Alarm Clocks

Volunteers often travel by bus, but their communities might see only one bus per day, which usually leaves not long after sunrise and fills up quickly. You might find yourself having to get up at 4 AM just to make sure you get a seat out of town. That's why alarm clocks (or at least a good watch with a loud alarm) are very helpful. They're small and easy to pack, too.

Remember, though, that bringing an alarm clock means bringing one more item to find batteries or an electrical outlet for. Some volunteers simply rely on the sun, the chickens, the people, the calls to prayer, and other disturbances that happen routinely at dawn.

[edit] Flashlights

Some volunteers absolutely love headlamps. In addition to helping light the way at night, they're great for reading, too.

The small rectangular type of flashlight is also handy, because you can keep it in your back pocket until you need it.

In villages it's a good idea to use some kind of light when walking around or biking at night, because that's when snakes are more active and tend to show up more frequently on the roads and paths.

[edit] Entertainment

[edit] Music

Music is always nice to have. CD players are good; iPods are better.

Electricity can be iffy (if you even have some at your site), so you might want to bring an extra battery for your iPod.

You can also get talk shows, news, and (sometimes) music via shortwave, such as Voice of America and BBC World Service. Note that you needn't bring a shortwave radio from America; you can buy good quality shortwaves in Ghana.

In addition, satellite radio service is also becoming popular for Peace Corps volunteers heading to Ghana. For example, WorldSpace offers digital satellite radio to all of Africa for a monthly subscription fee.

[edit] Movies

Consider bringing a few DVDs with you to donate to the collection in the Peace Corps Ghana sub-offices.

If you bring a laptop, the ability to play DVDs is a nice luxury. A portable DVD player is also an option. In either case, make sure your equipment can also read VCDs, which are quite common in Ghana.

[edit] Books and Magazines

Bring a few books, but send the rest using M-Bags before leaving for Ghana. They will take around four months to get to Accra. Don't send any that you'd want to keep for good; you probably won't want to lug them back to the U.S. anyway. Instead, consider donating your stash to the Peace Corps Ghana sub-offices.

Some volunteers have magazine subscriptions, but remember that everyone gets a free subscription to Newsweek.

[edit] Gifts

As part of your training, you will be paired with a host family to help you learn about Ghanaian customs and manners. It's nice but not necessary to bring a gift for your family, so here are some suggestions:

Consider some children's backpacks. Many children are not allowed to take their books home from school to study with unless they have a backpack. People often ask for these.
Pens and pencils are good to give away and easy to pack. Those "gel" pens go over really well with kids.
A hardcover book of photos of famous American landmarks or scenes from your hometown
Simple, cheap, unbreakable toys for your host family's kids, such as a Frisbee
Fanny packs seem to go over well with host families
T-shirts and hats with American themes
Cheap ($20) watches such as the Timex Expedition. (The watches available in Ghana are even cheaper and usually very poor quality.)
Ghanaians sometimes ask for "American" bibles.
Card games such as Uno or Go Fish
For the host mom: perfumes, lotions, good-quality dish towels

If you can't decide what to give your soon-to-be Ghanaian friends, almost anything that you can't get in Ghana would be appreciated.

Even if you decide on a gift, it's a good idea to bring along lots of pictures of you and your family, as well.

[edit] Miscellaneous

A small spray bottle can be surprisingly helpful. You can fill it with water and spray it on your clothes to make the wrinkles fall out. It works so well, you might not even need an iron! Spray the clothes spread out on the bed, hanging over a chair, or even after you've put them on. You can also use it on your hair in the morning to get the bedhead out. Additionally, you can keep it on your bedside table to use when trying to fall asleep on hot nights. You can spray water on yourself--arms, legs, face, whatever isn't covered by clothing--and it can cool you down really fast. If there's a fan blowing over you, it works even better, but it helps a lot even without a fan.

Small spray bottles can be found in the travel section of a drugstore where they sell small sized toiletries, and if they don't have empty ones for sale, just buy some hairspray and refill it with water. If you have extra room in your bag, the larger, normal-sized spray bottle (sold in gardening sections, salon supply stores like Sally's, and drugstores) works better and would be easier to use at your site, but the small one is better for traveling around Ghana. Having one of each is handy if you can fit them in.

The Bradt Ghana Travel Guide is helpful even if you don't plan on traveling throughout Ghana. It's so detailed that it probably has tips for your site! One volunteer, who had served in a small town in the Upper West Region, didn't learn of a nearby wildlife sanctuary until he returned from his two years of service and read about his site in the Guide.

[edit] How do I mail myself something?

Sometimes it is better to mail yourself certain items instead of trying to take them with you on the flight to Ghana. If you are a voracious reader, for example, it may be cheaper and easier to send a box of books by surface mail than to check them with your luggage.

To mail yourself something, you basically have two options:

Send the item to the Peace Corps office in Ghana. The office has a mailroom that will hold your package until you come to collect it. In fact, when Peace Corps officers make a routine visit to your site, they usually bring along any of your mail so you may not even need to make the journey to Accra. During training, this is usually about once a week. If you are sure the package will arrive during your training, send it to the Peace Corps Accra address, and prefix your name with "PCT" so they know where to send it. After training, you can also send packages to the Peace Corps suboffices in Kumasi and Tamale, in addition to the main office in Accra.
Send the item to yourself at your site. For volunteers in the northern regions, trips to Accra are rare, and it is sometimes faster and more convenient to have a package delivered directly to your site. Note, however, that getting packages through local customs offices can sometimes be a pain.

If you want to send yourself something directly but don't yet know the location of your site, you can simply leave the package (and some money for shipping) with a friend or relative. A few weeks later, when you know the location of your site, you can relay the address and have them ship the package to you.

Note that airmail to Ghana is fast (usually less than two weeks) but very expensive. On the other hand, surface mail is much cheaper but far slower. Packages sent by surface mail have been known to take six months or more before arriving in Ghana. One volunteer has reported that a package was delivered three years after it was sent.

Be careful when packing food. Any chocolate or similar products are likely to melt. Also, you should not take individually-wrapped items (such as snacks) out of their boxes. This will help mice or other vermin obtain your food for themselves. Nothing is as frustrating as getting a huge box with a little hole on the outside and seeing lots of crumbs and empty wrappers on the inside. Place any food in ziploc bags and seal well! This will keep the ants out!

[edit] Training

[edit] What is the training schedule?

Here is a typical schedule of the major events in Peace Corps Ghana training:

Staging in Philadelphia (2 days) Group activities to learn about Peace Corps goals and get to know your fellow volunteers at the hotel. (Get used to these group activities and flip-charts; you will see a lot of it throughout your service.) Receive shots before the bus ride to New York City.
Flight from New York City to Accra This is a long flight; be sure to bring a book to read or some music. The Country Director and Associate Peace Corps Directors should be there at the airport, so dress somewhat decent. There should be many volunteers coming to cheer you on as well!
Accra Phase (5 days) Training sessions the first few days, then a quick tour around the facility where you get to truly see Ghana for the first time. "Accra Quest" follows, where you are given some Ghana cedis to visit different sites in Accra while traveling in pairs.
Vision Quest (4 days) Each trainee will travel to a current volunteer's site and spend a few days there. Pack wisely (light), and the rest of your luggage will be trucked to Kukurantumi. It may sound a little daunting to travel on your own to a remote village somewhere in Ghana, but all of us have survived, and it's nice to actually spend some time at an actual site and see what Peace Corps life is like. You will travel to Kukurantumi to start Pre-Service Training.
Pre-Service Training (9 weeks) Many volunteers agree that this is by far the hardest part of the Peace Corps experience. It consists mainly of an endless number of training sessions. You also will be matched to a host family in one of the three villages: Kukurantumi, Suhyen, or Old Tafo and stay there for the duration of training. You will find out where your site is and start learning the language that is spoken there withing the first two weeks. Then more sessions... Be sure to get to know your fellow trainees; they are your best support system that you have for the two years. Near the end of training, you will get to meet your counterparts at a nearby university and travel to your site and stay there a few days. Swearing in follows shortly after.
Service (2 years) You have probably heard this many times before, but Peace Corps is what you make of it. Good luck!

[edit] Traveling

[edit] What are some good obruni-style restaurants?

Frankie's Hotel & Restaurant: Frankie's serves up the best burgers and milkshakes in Ghana. The restaurant is on the second floor, while a bakery is on the first (great for early morning donuts and croissants). The upper levels are reserved for the hotel rooms. Frankie's is located in the heart of Osu.

Steers: The McDonald's-style food at Steers isn't particularly good (although the fries are an exception), but it's worth checking out simply for the experience of visiting a shiny fast food restaurant that looks like it was plucked right out of suburban America. It's located in Osu, across the street from Frankie's.

Wato Club: This restaurant/bar is a popular hangout for Peace Corps volunteers. Three stories of balcony seating in an old colonial building, it's a pleasant place for people-watching and conversation. Enjoy a cup of fish chowder and a beer while you're there.

[edit] What can I do for entertainment when I'm on vacation away from my site?

Video Nut: This converted residence has several rooms (some with beds...hmm...), each containing a big-screen TV. The lobby offers a wide assortment of VideoCDs that you can take back to an available room and enjoy with your friends. Video Nut is located on the outskirts of Osu, easily reachable by taxi.

[edit] Clothing

[edit] What is the dress code for teachers?

For shoes, sandals and flip-flops are usually inappropriate. Teachers should wear closed-toed shoes to work.

[edit] Hygiene

[edit] Is long hair acceptable for men in Ghana?

Long-haired men are very uncommon in Ghana. It is generally not acceptable for men to grow out their hair (unless they live on the beach and play reggae music). As a foreigner, however, long hair will likely be seen as just one more strange thing about you. You are more likely to offend a Ghanaian by not greeting him properly than by wearing long hair. Therefore, many male Peace Corps volunteers have let their hair grow long and never noticed any problems.

[edit] Is short hair acceptable for women in Ghana?

Most women in Ghana grow their hair long, while schoolgirls are usually required to keep their hair short. Having super-short hair is therefore considered a "small girl" thing. But being a foreigner, you're held to a different set of standards in this respect. Volunteers have reported little difference in the way people respond to them after cutting their hair short. As long as you keep yourself as neat and clean as possible given the circumstances, short hair is fine.

[edit] Schedule

[edit] What is the schedule like for teachers?

Ghana schools are on a trimester (three-term) calendar.

Term 1: late September to December
Term 2: mid-January to mid-April
Term 3: early May to August

Officially, teachers are not allowed to leave their post during term breaks; however, this practice is rarely followed. Most Peace Corps Ghana teachers go on vacation between terms to relax.